The Road to Nhill

The park at Nhill has nearly two acres of lawn, a playground, and a wetlands boardwalk. When the kids are aged three, five, and seven, it is a welcome stop for parents making the long drive to Adelaide.

When they arrived, Dad and the kids disappeared down the hill leaving Mum and Grandma to make lunch, or so I assumed.

Instead, Mum and Grandma said prayers. Dad returned the kids, washed, and was sitting by their car putting his shoes back on as I walked past. "G'day, mate," he said in the unmistakable accents of Australia.

He took his prayer mat over to the lawn, remaining serene as two of his children hurtled past mid prayer, one each side of him. Two grey nomads calmly stepped around him to read a tourist sign. A young Uyghur couple arrived and set up lunch at a nearby picnic table.